Editing Failure to appear (section)

=== Modern federal law ===
Today, a defendant who "fails to appear before a [federal] court as required by the conditions of release" or "fails to surrender for service of sentence pursuant to a court order" remains subject to criminal sanctions.<ref name=":6">18 U.S.C. § [https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/3146 3146].</ref> A court will use the following scheme to determine a defendant's punishment:<ref>[[U.S. Sentencing Guidelines|USSG]] [http://www.ussc.gov/guidelines-manual/2014/2014-chapter-2-e-k#2j16 §2J1.6]</ref>

{|class="wikitable"
|-
![[Crime|Offense]] of preconviction
!Punitive measure
![[Offense level]]
|-
|Offense punishable by death, life imprisonment, or imprisonment up to at least 15 years
|prison up to 10 years or fine or both
|14
|-
|Offense punishable by imprisonment up to at least 5 years
|prison up to 5 years or fine or both
|11
|-
|Any other felony
|prison up to 2 years or fine or both
|8
|-
|Misdemeanor
|prison up to 1 year or fine or both
|5
|}

A defendant can present an [[affirmative defense]] that "uncontrollable circumstances prevented" their appearance.<ref name=":6" /> To make this claim successfully, the defendant must not have contributed to the uncontrollable circumstances and must have "appeared or surrendered as soon as such circumstances ceased to exist".<ref name=":6" />

An "uncontrollable circumstance" can either be physical or mental, the latter of which courts refer to as "[[Duress in American law|duress]]".<ref name=":10">[https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F3/40/9/507779/ United States v. Veilleux], 40 F.3d 9, 10 (1st Cir. 1994).</ref> Not all mental pressures satisfy the uncontrollable circumstance requirement; courts have held that only something as serious as threats of significant bodily harm or death can excuse an FTA.<ref name=":10" /> The prospect of prosecutorial reprisal, fear of harassment, and loss of faith in the criminal justice system generally do not amount to uncontrollable duress.<ref name=":10" /><ref>[https://casetext.com/case/us-v-kinsella-6 United States v. Kinsella], 530 F. Supp. 2d 356, 362 (D. Me. 2008).</ref> Courts have dismissed claims based on fears of [[deportation]]<ref name=":13">[https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F2/814/73/336027/ United States v. Odufowora], 814 F.2d 73, 75 (1st Cir. 1987).</ref> and a defendant's desire "to make a political statement or engage in protest activity".<ref>[https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F3/51/861/617558/ United States v. Springer], 51 F.3d 861, 868 (9th Cir. 1995).</ref> The legislative history for the federal statute indicates that the affirmative defense should only apply in extreme circumstances: "for example, a person is recuperating from a heart attack and to leave his bed would imperil his life, or, after he had made careful plans for transportation to the court house, his vehicle breaks down or unexpected weather conditions bring traffic to a halt."<ref name=":13" /><ref>S. Rep. No. [https://books.google.com/books?id=JbIvAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA32 98-227], at 32 (1983).</ref>